We doubt there are any surfers out there – no matter what level – who enjoy a hold down. It's the ultimate form of rubbing salt in a wound (no pun intended!), yes mother nature we know we were in the wrong place at the wrong time, yes we know we didn't quite fully commit to that drop or turn…but do you really need to work us over underwater to teach us a lesson?!
With that in mind we decided to chat to the guys from Freedive UK for some handy tips on training yourself to be more comfortable and confident in the most horrible – and to some degree scary – aspect of surfing.
Trained freedivers are as close to fish like as you'll get – easily holding their breath for over 4 minute and heading down to depths of over 100m – needless to say these guys know what they're talking about…
Its never nice, being held under the water for longer than you were planning, but thankfully there are things that you can do to improve your chances of avoiding panic and anything more serious.
But I'm afraid that there is no secret breathing technique or magic bullet that is going to solve all of your woes.
Training to deal with an unexpected hold-down is just that, training, and the more time you put in to your training the more comfortable you will be.
With a series of adapted freediving techniques you can brace yourself for even the biggest hold-down, making you feel more confident above and below the water.
Firstly, understand that your trigger to want to breathe is caused by an increase of CO2, not a decrease in O2 and this trigger comes very early in order to warn you that your O2 levels are dropping. So once we understand that we can learn to fight the urge and panic less in those unexpected breath-hold moments. Calm yourself with logic!
You can train yourself to work more effectively in a hypoxic (lack of oxygen) situation by doing swimming pool drills and land exercises.
Pool drills
Swim one or two lengths with your head above the water, much like if you are paddling a surfboard, then swim at full speed as if your were trying to catch a wave.
At the end of the length take a deep breath, grab the end of the pool and lay face first in the pool, avoiding making any movements or holding any muscle tension.
Push through the urge to breathe as much as you can.
When you cant manage any more keep you hands on the side, get your feet to the bottom of the pool and bring your head up so its clear of the water. Then start taking some powerful inhales to oxygenate your blood; focus on the inhales more than the exhales (people tend to exhale more in the effort to get rid of C02).
Dry land drills
An apnea walk is a simple tool that will increase your C02 conditioning and is something you can do easily everyday no matter where you are – on the walk to work, in your garden, even on the beach on the way to a surf.
It involves taking a deep breath then holding it as you walk for as far as you can manage – simple!
Do not rush, this isnt apnea running! You will notice your legs start to feel heavy as they start to work anaerobically. When enough is enough, just stop and start recovery breathing.
The more you do exercises like this, the more you will improve your bodys response to high levels of C02 and low O2.
It can be slow progress but you will notice the difference the next time things hit the fan.
Key things to remember:
1: Your trigger to need to breathe is caused by high C02 not low O2.
2: Relax your body when underwater, every muscle that you use is using vital O2.
3: When you come up focus on your inhales rather than the exhales.
4: Dont panic. You have more in the tank than you could imagine.
If you fancy getting into freediving – either as a sport or to help improve your surfing head over to the Freedive UK site – which also includes a surf apnea course – for more information and course dates
REMEBER ALWAYS CONDUCT APNEA TRAINING WITH A RESCUE TRAINED BUDDY, NEVER ALONE.
This brief overview can never take the place of a real training course.